When
London Fashion Week
kicks off this Friday, all eyes will be on the catwalks as designers showcase the trends for autumn/winter 2011. But there's another show that's just as important to watch: the runway audience. With a seating plan, fashion's pecking order is laid bare, as magazine editors and traditional taste-makers battle to retain front-row supremacy among growing swathes of fashion bloggers and who-knows-whatters. Here's our who's-who guide to the fashion tribes at London Fashion Week -what they'll be wearing, who they'll be watching, and where to catch them
après
-show.

The new establishment
Move over Anna Wintour, there's a new queen bee of the front row. Pin-thin in skinny jeans and sharp-shouldered jacket, Emmanuelle Alt has just replaced Carine Roitfeld at the helm of Paris
Vogue
. Despite rumours of a rift between the two, Alt is of the same school: she's nailed the tousled-hair-tucked-into-coat-collar look, insouciant swagger and perma-pout of her predecessor. Right now, everyone in the fashion pack is looking to her lead.

Flying the flag for British taste-makers are Kate Reardon, who has taken the top spot at
Tatler
, where royal wedding excitement is reaching a peak, and Shala Monroque, who's the focus at
Pop
magazine now that Dasha Zhukova has stepped down.

On the more conservative side, Samantha Cameron and Anya Hindmarch have been given new roles as ambassador for Fashion Week and non-executive board director of the British Fashion Council, respectively. Expect Marks & Spencer mixed with Erdem.

But groomed and polished New Yorkers will be putting up a fight. Amanda Brooks takes up the high-profile position of women's fashion director for Barneys, while Taylor Tomasi Hill, US
Marie Claire
's accessories editor, works the downtown look to perfection. Julia Sarr-Jamois, the fashion editor of
Wonderland
, and Caroline Issa, publisher of
Tank
, are never knowingly under-dressed.

The celebrity front-rowers
They may be gifted free clothes and have a stylist put their outfits together, but it's brutal for celebrity attendees. Not only do they have to look great, but worry about those camera flashes and having their seats stolen by children. Ten-year-old singer Willow Smith sat front-row at Dolce & Gabbana and Armani, while 12-year-old Elle Fanning (star of Sofia Coppola's
Somewhere
and little sister of Dakota) and 14-year-old
True Grit
star Hailee Steinfeld, who has already shown promise for wearing a striped Prada dress at the Sag Awards last month, are all hot on her heels.

Other celebrities trying to steal the Geldof sisters' glory are Josephine de la Baume, the new face of Agent Provocateur and Mark Ronson's fiancée, while fashion-conscious musicians Jessie J, Anna Calvi (Karl Lagerfeld's favourite) and Tennessee Thomas, drummer with The Like, could also be star spots. As for the boys, we have the actors and former Burberry models Douglas Booth and Eddie Redmayne, who is reportedly dating Carey Mulligan.

The model army
It's sadly no longer enough to be genetically blessed. To be a successful model now, you need a back-story. Take Arizona Muse, touted as the new Gisele, with her cropped bob and strong brows. No easy route into the industry for her: she fell pregnant after signing to Next model agency and took time out with her baby before returning to snag the YSL campaign, a Prada exclusive and the opening and closing slots at Miu Miu. Kind of a big deal.

Not to be outdone, Dree Hemingway can boast that her great grandfather was author Ernest Hemingway. She's landed campaigns for Margaret Howell, Gucci, Jean Paul Gaultier and Chanel.

No back-story? Keep things interesting. Texan Britt Maren took a leaf out of chameleon supermodel Linda Evangelista's book by cutting her hair short and bleaching it white-blonde for Balenciaga's spring/summer 2011 show, before changing to brunette for Alexander Wang last week.

Topping them all is Andrej Pejic, the poster boy (or girl?) for androgyny, who's snapping at the heels of female models by taking their jobs. He closed Jean Paul Gaultier's couture show last month as the "bride" and booked men's and women's shows in New York last week.

The young guns
Fashion assistants are the people to watch if you want to know how to work the trends. Their below-par salaries and hunger for the new style result in unique looks. Pick their brains for insider knowledge and creative ways with the high street. Lucy Williams, fashion assistant at
InStyle
, ticks the trend boxes and adds a splash of the unexpected to ensure she never looks try-hard. Her US counterparts, Emily Weiss at US
Vogue
and Laurel Pantin at
Teen Vogue
, both have a knack with vintage and sample sale bargains. Being in their gang is about knowing 101 ways with a hat and forging relationships with up-and-coming designers, picking up future classics at a snip.

The next-gen bloggers
Now that Bryanboy, Garance Doré, Scott Schuman and Tavi Gevinson are safely ensconced on the front row, there's a new generation of style bloggers hoping to get their big break at Somerset House. They are aware of the lucrative power of blogs and are hoping to snag a runway-side spot. Of course, it helps if you have model looks: Bip Ling is a model and DJ who features bands, drawings and photos on her fashion blog. Tokyo-based street-fashion photographer Rei Shito looks as cool as her subjects, while Rumi Neely of Fashion Toast has enjoyed a number of collaborations (with clothing labels RVCA and Forever 21, and jewellery brand Dannijo).

On the tweet beat at:
House of Holland, Meadham Kirchhoff.
What they'll be wearing:
Chloé-inspired balletic skirts and flats, Jil Sander for Uniqlo separates and Rodarte hair barrettes.
The hang-out:
The Wyld bar at the new W hotel in Leicester Square.
Other tribe members:
Jess Dempsey, Vanessa Jackman.
Catchphrase:
"I'm designing and modelling, as well as doing my blog."